Bowlers did the job: Mahi |
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Monday April 14, 01:02 AM
Kanpur, April 13: Romping home in three days in his first Test match as captain, Mahendra Singh Dhoni was ecstatic on Sunday. A series-levelling win was the best India could have hoped for and Dhoni made it clear in no uncertain terms.
"It wasn’t about revenge but we really wanted to win this game after the way we lost at Ahmedabad. We got the best result we could achieve and that too in three days. Obviously if we had Kumble the game would not even have gone on to the third day," said a confident Dhoni after the match.
The wicketkeeper-batsman lauded the efforts of the bowlers who shot out South Africa for 121 in the second innings, setting up the win. "The bowlers knew where to bowl. They knew which length would get wickets and create pressure. Harbhajan consistently troubled the batsmen with his spin and bounce while the fast bowlers took key wickets, getting the ball to reverse swing."
Dhoni’s captaincy came in for praise from many quarters including his counterpart, but he played it down. "It’s just my first game, so you can’t really decide. It was an easy win and all the bowling changes worked."
He added that captaining in Tests was a different kettle of fish. "In Test captaincy you have time so you don’t need to rely on instincts. Getting part-timers Yuvi and Viru to bowl was a deliberate move. The odd wickets they took were very crucial for us. We never needed a third spinner. Sehwag in these conditions is a damn good bowler," he said.
The 27-year-old said the South Africans should have played more freely. "You have to keep scoring. Especially on a track like this, you have to stay positive. That’s why Sourav’s knock was so important. It gave us the first innings lead and that changed the mindset of their batsmen.
"They didn’t go for the big shots against the spinners, because they wanted to get their eye in. But on this pitch you are never really set. Look at Rahul Dravid and Mark Boucher’s dismissals."
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